Washington Co. deputies involved in Eurie Martin death fired

SANDERSVILLE, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – We have an update on the GBI’s investigation of Eurie Martin’s death–the man who was tasered to death while in custody of Washington County deputies.

Washington County Sheriff Thomas Smith released a statement on Thursday announcing his decision to fire the three deputies who were involved.

Sheriff Smith says Washington County District Attorney Hayward Altman contacted him after the GBI released their findings of the case they’ve been looking into since early July.

They found that the three officers involved–Deputies Michael Howell, Henry L. Copeland and Rhett Scott violated many of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office’s procedures.

“While this office was not directly involved in the investigation into the incident or the decision of whether criminal charges would be issued for the incident, the briefing from District Attorney Altman provided sufficient information for me to reach the conclusion that the conduct of Deputies Michael Howell, Henry L. Copeland and Rhett Scott included acts which are in violation of several of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office’s written Standard Operating Procedures,” the release stated.

Sheriff Smith says in the release that he is committed to ensuring that all personnel within his organization are properly trained and work in a professional manner.

The termination of those three officers are effective immediately.

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